Richelet, Caesar Peter

, a French writer, and noted as the first who published a dictionary almost entirely satirical, was born at Cheminon in Champagne, in 1631. He was the friend of Patru and d’Ablancourt; and, like them, applied himself to the study of the French language with success. He composed a dictionary full of new and useful remarks, which would have been more acceptable if it had not been also full of satirical reflections and indecencies; but these were expunged in the latter editions. It was first published at Geneva, 1680, in one vol. 4to; but, after the death of the author, which happened in 1698, enlarged with a great number of new articles to 2 vols. folio, as is the edition of Lyons in 1721. Another edition, 3 vols. folio, was published at Lyons in 1727; and a very neat one in 2 vols. 4to, at Amsterdam in 1732; and, lastly, in 3 vols. folio, at Lyons, 1759 1763, by the abbe Gouget. The abridgment of it by Galtel, 1797 and 1803, 2 vols. 8vo, is now in most demand in France.

Richelet made a French translation of “The Conquest ef Florida,” by Garcilasso de la Vega; to which is prefixed an account of his life. He composed some other pieces, of the grammatical and critical kind, relating to the French tongue. ²